You'd Be Surprised What You Can Live Through
by Phoenix Bradley
Summary: Jafar makes a deal with the fates to return to Agrabah, but things have changed a lot in his absence and he has a dark secret to keep if he plans on ever earning back any trust. Starts as a crossover for the first chap but is primarily and Aladdin fanfic
1. Chapter 1

You'd Be Surprised What You Can Live Through  
by, Phoenix Bradley

(Summary: Takes place after Jafar's death in the 2nd movie and after the Hercules episode "The Arabian Night" –if you haven't seen it, long story short, Hades brings Jafar back and they team up in an attempt to kill both Aladdin and Hercules, fail, and Jafar gets pulled into the River Styx. You can see it on youtube.- Jafar manages to get out of the river and while wandering around to look for a way out he comes across the fates toying with another mortal's life. Only this time that mortal is Jasmine and he realizes a lot has happened since he's been gone and he wants to go back. Rated T, I own nothing.)

Hades was seated on his thrown, reading over the list of newcomers when he could hear the crashing and thumping coming from the corridor and he groaned, rubbing his forehead. One of these days Pain and Panic would have to master the art of entering in a room without stumbling over each other. He soon saw their shadows darting closer and they tumbled in, one after the other, their worried expressions not concerning him in the slightest. Considering they were in the underworld there was only so much the dead could do… which really wasn't much anything at all.

"Yes?" he asked almost bored. Pain stumbled and stammered over his words then threw Panic in front of him and shoved him towards Hades' feet.

"You tell him!" he ordered. Panic looked up at Hades, shaking profusely.

"Tell me what?" asked Hades, still bored.

"Um…" stammered Panic. "Remember a few months ago… that new guy?"

"I get a lot of new guys, okay? You're gonna have to be more specific."

Panic cowered and shoved Pain in front of him. "You tell him!"

"Just TELL ME!" shouted Hades, fire erupting from his skin as he lost his temper. Pain and Panic screamed and stood there trembling before Pain finally spoke up.

"The tall and dark guy… with the twisty beard… what was his name? Jafa?"

"Jareth I think…" said Panic

"Jafar," groaned Hades.

"That's him!" Pain and Panic said in unison.

"What about him?"

"Uh… well…" stumbled Pain. "He's… gone."

Hades looked up, now interested. "Gone? What do you mean gone? He was pulled into the river Styx, there's nowhere for him to go. No one gets out of there."

"Begging your pardon your highness, but he… did…" stuttered Panic.

"Well then where did he go?"

"We… don't… know…"

Hades leapt to his feet. "What?! Find him! I can't have the gods thinking the lord of the dead has lost his touch! Go find him!"

"Yes sir!" they shouted and took off like a shot. Hades groaned and sank back in his throne.

"There's nowhere that guy could have gone. This is the underworld and no one escapes." He smiled to himself. "Besides even if he did he's dead, what's he gonna do, fly through things?" He kicked back and nodded. "No need for alarm."

----

"Come on Panic! He can't have gotten far!" They scrambled over towards the river to see if they could see where Jafar could have possibly gotten out. Normally he could be seen floating near the edge, but now he was nowhere to be seen. Panic moved near the edge.

"Excuse me but have you seen a man climb out of here?" he asked. Pain struck him upside the head.

"They're dead you idiot, what do you expect to learn from them? Come on." He turned to leave but was stopped by a transparent figure standing before him.

"Panic!" he shouted but his warning was too late, in one swoop they both were knocked off the edge and into the river where souls clamored around them, dragging them under.

"No hard feelings gentlemen, but I simply cannot afford to be stopped by two blundering imbeciles such as yourselves," he said, turning slowly then glancing over his ghostly shoulder to them. "I'm sure you understand." He strode out smoothly, leaving them to their fate.

He wandered around the corridors, wishing he at least was familiar with the layout of this place. Even in his brief visit months ago he'd never really seen the whole of the underworld. But an exit couldn't be that hard to locate. "Soon I will be free of this accursed place, and I will have my revenge at last!" he growled to himself. "That street rat will regret the day he sent me here! He and that street mouse Jasmine. They will be the under world's most beautiful couple, doomed to circle the River Styx together for eternity!" He let out a loud evil cackle when a voice interrupted him.

"Keep it down will you?"

He turned, noticing a room at the end of the corridor and headed strait for it, peering in to find three women gathered around a table, a thread laying in the center and a pair of scissors. Beside them was a mirror with an eerie glow.

"Uh oh, we've got a live one!" spoke the shortest of the three, an eye resting dead center in her face.

"Hades' not going to like this…" said the second, a taller skinny woman with green skin and yellow hair that stood out in jagged strands. She seized the eye from the shortest and placed it in one of her two empty sockets.

"How did you get up here?" demanded the third, a taller woman with blue skin who took the eye from the second and placed it in one of her eye sockets.

"Never mind him, we have a job to finish!" said the first, seizing up the string. The eye was thrown up into the air and turned into a glowing portal which soon showed the image of a room where a young woman was sitting beside a bed where a young man lay. Jafar's eyes widened as he recognized them.

"Wait a minute… Jasmine?" He moved up to the image and got a better look. It was Jasmine all right. She was sitting on the edge of a bed in the palace and beside her was her husband, laying pale and sickly. "Aladdin?"

"It's a pity he couldn't have caught that sickness a few hundred years later," said the short woman. "They'd have had more than enough medication to cure it before it would have even put him to bed."

"But you can't pick your fate," said the blue woman.

"But we can!" they said in unison, delighted. They stretched out the thread as one of them reached for the scissors.

"What is that?" asked Jafar.

"His life. And it's about to be cut short," they cackled. Jafar smiled, catching on.

"So tell me then, if you end lives, can you also give them back?" They looked at him suspiciously.

"Don't even think about it," said the green woman. "You've already cheated death once."

"You're dead, enjoy it!" said the blue woman.

"Besides we're fates. We don't make mistakes. You're here because you're supposed to be here. We're not sending you back."

Jafar put a hand on his hip but turned on his charm. He would not be defeated this easily. "Ladies," he said with a grin. "Surely you know I was murdered. Forgive me if I'm wrong but wouldn't that mean I was taken before my time?"

"Murdered?" they scoffed.

"You met your fate fair and square," said the short one. "We make no mistakes."

He sneered and watched them stretch out the thread again and he couldn't help but feel his anger rising. Here he'd tried so hard countless times to accomplish what they were about to do in the blink of an eye with almost no effort. "Still…" he muttered. "It's a pity I met my time before that street rat." He grinned, "But then again, at least I get to see him meet his fate."

They stopped and looked to him, the short one giving him a smile. "Oh?" She turned to the others. "Perhaps a deal can be made, if this one thinks he can our job better than us."

"He obviously thinks he knows how to judge when man's time is up," said the blue one.

"And he's already dedicated himself to ending the life of another. Perhaps a deal can be made."

The green lady handed him a pair of old jagged scissors and the short one stretched out the thread. "We will send you back, if you truly feel your life is more valuable. All you have to do is cut the thread and end a life."

He looked to the image again. It was obvious the boy was going to die soon anyways so at the very least he would speed up the process… though ending his suffering almost didn't sound satisfying. The look on Jasmine's face as she held her husband's hand made him smile and make up his mind. At the very least it would get him even with her and he would have the thrill of watching her suffer. "You drive a hard bargain," he cackled with a smile, opening the scissors. "I'm afraid I'll have to accept!" And with a snip that echoed throughout the underworld, he cut through the thread. He could hear Jasmine crying as the image vanished and the eye fell back in the short woman's face, and the green woman shouted, "Incoming!"

Aladdin's transparent spirit floated by like a cold breeze and the women cheered as he floated past and towards the river. Jafar smiled eagerly and threw back his head in a loud bout of laughter. "Yes!" he shouted. "At last I have had my revenge!" He laughed again then turned to the fates. "I believe we had a deal."

They all grinned mischievously. "A deal is a deal. You will return to Agrabah," said the short fate. "However there is a catch."

Jafar's smile vanished. "What?!"

"You will return in the form you died in," said the blue woman. "A genie."

"What?!" he shouted again, but before he could do anything they snapped their fingers and a black lamp appeared beside him. "NO!" he shouted but it was too late. Smoke fired from the spout and engulfed him and he was pulled in angrily shouting curses at them while they cackled in delight.

"A deal's a deal," they laughed in unison.

----

(A/N: R&R. This will be primarily an Aladdin fanfic, not Hercules, that's why this is in the Aladdin category. There will be very little more of these characters. Except for Jafar of course.)


	2. Chapter 2

(A/N: It's amazing what too much free time will do to you… I'm actually watching America's Next Top Model and trying to remember who the hell won this cycle… and why I even care to begin with… okay back to the story)

Razul circled the palace for the third time. There was nothing happening, the place was very dead. Ever since that street rat had died, and the sultan's passing almost a month earlier there had been great concern about the princess' well being. She spent her days shut away, never talking to anyone, hardly eating or sleeping. Her heart was shattered and the kingdom was suffering for it without their princess to lead them.

"If we had a royal vizier we wouldn't have this problem!" squawked Iago from one of the archways. Razul sneered at him.

"Quiet you!" Razul ordered.

"I'm just sayin', if we had an advisor then maybe the princess would act like a princess and less like a grieving widow."

"Oh cut the princess a little slack," said Genie as he floated over. "She's doing the best she can, maybe just a little cheering up would do her good."

"I don't do cheering up, Blue," Iago growled. "Besides I got things to do." He fluttered off. "Life's too short to waste on you chumps, I'm outta here!"

Genie grimaced as he flew off and shrugged. "Guess it's up to me. Don't worry! I'll have the princess back on her feet in no time! Leave it to me!" In a dash he was off and Razul sighed. As much as that street rat's friends annoyed him, he hoped they were right and the princess would be on her feet again soon.

----

Jasmine sat alone in her dark bedroom looking in a mirror. It had been days since she'd last seen the light of day. Ever since Aladdin's death she hadn't the heart to leave her room or face anyone. Everything reminded her of him and the pain was almost unbearable. It seemed like only yesterday they had been together on a magic carpet seeing the world and now it was just her.

She sighed and hugged herself, looking at the door as if it were an obstacle to overcome. Would she venture out today?

A loud squawking interrupted her train of thought and her window burst open as a very panicked Iago flew in, crashing into her wall and landing on the floor. "JASMINE!" he shouted as he flew in and once he regained his balance and was on his feet he ran to her. "Jasmine! Jasmine! I was in the market and I saw-" He was stopped by her clamping her hand on his beak.

"Stop shouting, Iago, and calm down," she said annoyed, then let go. "Now what is it?"

"In the market place!" he squawked, clearly not calming down. "I saw it! It was there! I don't know how but it was there! A merchant was selling it!"

"Selling what?"

"The lamp!"

Jasmine raised an eyebrow and looked to her dresser. "Iago, Genie's lamp is right there."

Iago flew up face to face with her and grabbed her by the cheeks. "Not Genie's lamp! The other lamp! Jafar's lamp!" Jasmine jumped up.

"Don't be ridiculous, we destroyed it. You must have seen wrong."

"I know that lamp when I see it!" shouted Iago. "Go see for yourself if you don't believe me!"

Jasmine got to her feet and sighed. "You know what maybe I will." She threw on her peasant disguise and drew her hood. "But just know this is the most pathetic excuse you could have come up with to get me out of my room. I'll be back in a few hours, don't tell them where I went, I'd prefer to be alone."

"Whatever you say, Toots."

She headed out of her room and slipped past the guards unnoticed. Genie wandered into her room and smiled, nudging Iago. "Hey, great plan to get her out of the palace for a change."

"Er… yeah… that's what that was…" stammered Iago.

----

Jasmine blended in quite well with the other peasants as she walked the streets, though this wasn't the first time she'd tried this. It was hard not to let it remind her of her first time wandering the streets in disguise… how it had lead her to meet…

She stopped in midstep and stood in the middle of the streets feeling her heart sink in her chest. Maybe this was a bad idea. What was she doing here like this? She'd been in no shape to be around people she knew, what made her think she should be among strangers and away from the palace? She knew Iago was wrong, why had she let him talk her into wandering out?

She turned back towards the palace deciding to leave this foolish errand behind her and go back to her room where she was safe.

"Can I interest the pretty lady in some fine jewelry?" asked a voice and she turned to see a merchant holding a beautiful diamond necklace before her. "It accents your already stunning features." She shook her head, not even smiling at his flattery.

"No thanks. I…" She stopped, noticing something behind him. "What?" The man turned and saw what had caught her eye. A black oil lamp.

"Oh that? Surely it's something not befitting a beauty like yourself. It's just an old oil lamp. Surely you'd prefer jewels."

"Where did you get that?" she asked, reaching for it.

"I found it in the desert, someone must have dropped it." He looked surprised. "Does it interest you?"

As she stared at it the more she didn't believe it. It was a great duplication, and had Jafar's lamp not been created the day he became a genie she would have believed that it could have just been another oil lamp from the same creator. Then again thousands of oil lamps were made every day, there was bound to be a few look-a-likes. Then as she stared at it she realized something. The lamp wasn't reminding her of Jafar at all… it was reminding her of Aladdin. Anything that was related to Jafar was reminding her of how she watched him fight him many a time and win, how she had always felt safe and secure with him, seeing him stand up to such an evil man. Even thinking about it now was bringing back some security into her mind because he had not been the only one to survive those times. She had as well.

Jasmine nodded. "It does. How much do you want for it?" He named his price and she purchased it from him, looking at it closer. "Thank you," she said to the merchant and she headed back to the palace, the lamp clutched tightly in her hands.

----

Jasmine sat alone in her bedroom looking at the lamp. She dare not rub it. She knew it wasn't his lamp but that didn't mean it wasn't someone's. The last thing this place needed was another eccentric genie, or the risk of awakening a dangerous one. So instead it just lay in her hands, she almost being careful enough to not even let her palms brush it in a way that could be mistaken for a rub.

"That was fast," squawked a voice and she looked up to see Iago flying in from around the corner. "So did I tell you so or… AH!" The bird had seen what was in her hands and repelled himself to the other side of the room, cowering from here. "Why is that here?! Are you nuts?!"

"Stop it, Iago," sighed Jasmine. "It's not the lamp."

"I know that lamp when I see it!" Iago shouted.

"It's not his lamp, Iago."

"How would you know?!"

"Because I rubbed it," she said, standing up frustrated. "I rubbed it and nothing happened. You're making a deal out of nothing. Now go and leave me alone!" Iago fluttered off angrily.

"I know that lamp when I see it, toots. You're making a BIG mistake, you hear me!"

He was gone and it was quiet again and she sighed, sinking back onto the bed. "Stupid bird," she grumbled.

(A/N: I promise to pick this up soon, it's been a rough week. R&R)


End file.
